Catcher



l. R. TAYLOR June 14, 1932.

CATGHER Filed OGb. 17, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet l NMR June 14, 1932.

l. R. TAYLOR CATGHER Filed 00T'. 17. 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 [7i/vena?" ifa/ways.

`lune 14, 1932.

l. R. .LATAYLOR CATCHER Filed 0ct. 17. 1939.

4 Sheets-Sheet 3 NNS kuh..

l. R. TAYLOR- Jne 14, 1932.

CATCHER Filed Oct. 17, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Fatented q.laine 4 l932 IRWIN R. TAYLOR, OF GARY, INDIAN, ASSIGNOR PLATE COLNY, A CORPORATON OF NEW JERSEY GATCIEIm application med october i7, 1930. serial No. 489,473.

rlhis invention relates to mechanicalcatchers for sheet mills and, while not l1m1ted thereto, relates more particularly to catchers for use on merchant sheet mills and has for its object the provision of a catcher which will handle sheets of various thicknesses and widths without change or adjustment.

Another object is to provide a catcher of this type which is constructed as a unit and may be readily transferred from one mill to another or may be readily removed when necessary to make repairs to the mill.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the catcher.

Figure 2 is a plan view with parts removed and broken away for clearness.

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on .the

` line Ill-IH of Figure l.

Figure 4 is a side elevation.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary detail of a portion of the drive of the catcher.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the numeral 2 designates the base of the catcher which is built u of structural shapes and plates rigidly wel ed and riveted together. The forward end of the base 2 1s adapted to lit within the housings of the mill A.

rllhe letters B and C designate the top and bottom rolls of the mill A, respectively.

The forward end of the `base 2 is provided with bearing extensions 3 and 4 at its opposite sides in which is journaled a conveyor tailshaft 5 having sprockets 6 and 7 thereon. The sprocket 6 is free on the shaft 5 while the sprocket 7 is keyed thereon so as to cause the shaft to rotate with the conveyor.

Side members 8 are secured to the base 2 and 4serve to support a plurality of bearings. A conveyor head-shaft 9 is journaled in bearings 10 on the members 8 and has sprockets 11 and 12 keyed thereon. A suitable endless slat conveyor X composed of chains 13 and lll and cross slats 15 is trained over the sprockets 6,7, 11 and 12 on the shafts and 9? and forms an upwardly and rearwardly inclined receiving table for the sheets as they are fed from the mill.

Upright members 16 are provided forward of the side members '8 and are connected by a.'

. suiiciently transverse beam 17 to which bearings 18 are secured. A tail-shaft 19 for a top conveyor Y is journaled in the bearings 18 and has a sprocket 20 keyed thereon and a second sprocket 21 loose thereon.

Suitable upwardly and forwardly projecting beams 22 are provided to support a headshaft 23 for the conveyer Y. The head-shaft 23 is journaled in bearings 24 on the beams 22 and is provided with sprockets 25. The conveyer Y composed of chains 26 and 27 and cross slats 28 is trained over the sprockets 20, 21 and 25 on the shafts'19 and 23. rlhe forward end of the conveyer Y is at an elevation substantially equal or slightly above the top roll B of the mill and saidconveyer is so trained over the sprockets that its top stretch is taut while its bottom or return stretch is slack so as to dip or hang down onto the top stretch of the conveyer X and forms a Hexible pinch, that is, it will engage the sheets as they are moved onto the conveyer X and hold them against the conveyer while at the same time itwill assist in feeding said sheets upwardly along the inclined conveyer X.

A third conveyer Z is mounted to the rear of the conveyers X and Y and has its headshaft 30 journaled in bearings 31 on theside members 8 and has its tail-shaft 32 j ournaled in bearings 33 on the side members 8. The shaft 30 has sprockets 34 keyed thereto and the shaft 32 has a sprocket 35 keyed thereto and a sprocket 36 loose thereon. p veyer Z is composed of chains 37 and 37 a and cross slats 38 and 39 and trained over the sprockets 34 and 35-36 in the usual manner. The slats 39 are thicker than the slats 38 and the slats are arranged so that preferably every third slat is a thick slat 39. The purpose of the thick slats 39 is to provide abutments or straightening edges against which TO AMERICAN SHEET ND TN,

the ends of the sheets will strike as they are The several conveyers X, Y and Z are all adapted to be driven from a single motor which has a 'pinion 41 meshed with a gear 42 on a jack-shaft 43. The shaft 43 is provided with a sprocket 44 which is connected by a drive-chain 45 to drive sprockets 46 and 47 on the head-shafts 9 and 30 of conveyers AX and Z and to sprocket 48 on a jack-shaft 49 journaled in bearings 50. The jack-shaft 49 is provided with a second sprocket 51 which is connected by drive-chain 52 with a drivesprocket 53 on the head-shaft 23 of the conveyer Y.

In order to bridge the space between the bottom roll C of the mill and the forward end of the conveyer X a plurality of small conveyer rollers 55 are journaled in brackets 56 extendingI forwardly from the bearing extensions 3-and 4. The rollers 55 are powerdriven froin the tail-shaft of the conveyer X as follows: y

A sprocket 57 is provided on the tail-shaft 5 and is connected by a chain 58 to sprocket 59 on the rearmost roller 55 and the rollers 55 are all provided with sprockets 60 connected by a chain 61.

- A suitable rest-bar 62 is provided between the mill housings and carries stripping guides 63 ada ted to strip the sheets from the bottom ro l when necessary and guide said sheets onto the rollers 55.

In order to bridge the space between th i conveyers Y and Z and to continue to pinch the sheets against the conveyer X after they pass'beyond the conveyer Y a pivoted rollertable composed of side arms 64 and rollers 65, 66, 67, 68, 69 and 70 is provided. The arms 64 are pivoted on extended ends of the tail-shaft 19 of the conveyer Y and the several rollers are journaled in said arms. The rollers 65, 66, 67 and 68 serve as pinch-rollers to engage the sheets as they are fed upwardly along the conveyer X. The sheets vary in gage or thickness and therefore it is essential that the table be free to swing upwardly to accommodate the various gages o sheets.

The rollers 66, 67 and 68 serveas both pinch-rollers to pinch the sheets traveling up along the conveyer X and as conveyer rollers to convey the sheets from the conveyer Z to 'the top stretch of the conveyer Y. The roller serves as a pinch-roller alone while the rollers 69 and 70, which are above the roller 65, serve as conveyer rollers to convey the sheets onto thev conveyer Y. The roller 69 is an idler roller.l

In order to fill the 'gap between the ends of the conveyers X andZ a stationary idler table is provided composedof side members 72 and rollers 73, 74 and 7 5... The roller 75 is positioned so as to underlie the roller 68 and thereby form' a feed-out pinch for insuring delivery of the sheets onto the conveyer f down with the roll B.

The rollers- 65, 66, 67, 68 and) 70 are all power-o erated by power taken from the tail-sha of the conveyer Y. The tail-shaft 19 of the conveyer Y is provided with sprockets 76 and 89 at its opposite ends. The sprocket 76 Vis connected by a chain 77 to a sprocket 78 on an extension 79 at one end of the shaft of roller 65. The extension 79 of the shaft of roller 65 has a second sprocket 80 thereon which is connected by a chain 81 to sprockets 82 and 83 on shaft extensions of rollers 67 and 70. The opposite end of vthe shaft of roller 65 is provided with. an

extension 85 which is provided with a sprocket 86 connected to a sprocket 87 on a shaft extension of roller 68 by a chain 88.

Roller 66 is driven direct from the tail-shaft 19 of conveyer Y through a sprocket 89 on the tail-shaft which is connected to a sprocket 90 on the shaft of roller 66 by means of a drive-chain 91.

The rollers 7 3 and 75 of the stationary bridging table are power-driven from the head-shafts 30 of the conveyer Z. The rollers 73 and 75 are geared together and the shaft of roller 73 is provided with a sprocket 92 which is connected to a sprocket 93 on the had-shaft 30 of the conveyerZ by achain 9 Suitable guides 95 are provided on a bar 96 which extends between the side members 72 of the stationary table to revent the sheets entering below the roller g3 when bein returned by the conveyer Z.

he conveyer slats 38 and 39 of the conveyer Z are bent downwardly, as at 38", to form clearance recesses for the giuides 95.

The space between the forward end of the Aconveyer Y alid the top roll B of the mill is bridged b l.1L-*series of idler rollers 97 journaled in side members 98 which are pivoted to brackets 99 secured to the forward ends of beams 22. The top roll B is movable vertically and, since'the side members 98 are pivoted, the rollers 97 are free tomove up or In operation, the sheets are discharged fromthe mill onto the power-operated roll-v ers 55 and thence `onto the Slat conveyer X which conveys them up between the top stretch of the conveyer X and bottom -stretch of the conveyer Y which serves .to form a flexible pinch of sutlicient strength to hold the sheets on the upwardly inclined surface of the conveyer X.

As the sheets'move from under the conveyer Y they move under the pivoted roller-table and are engaged by the rollers 65, 66, 67 and 68, whichserve to pinch thersheets against the upper end of thevconveyer X.

As the sheets pass from the conveyer X they are delivered onto the conveyer Z and forced to strike one of the heavy slats'39. Due to the'fact that 'the edges of the sheets are more or less rounded and also that .the

ma y

recati@ slats 39 project only a slight distance above the other slats 38, the sheets will only strike against the slats 39 with a more or less glancing blow. However, such engagement is sufficient to straighten the sheets if they are not fed square with the slats and also to slacken the speed of the sheets so as to prevent overrunning of the sheets.

The conveyer Z is operated constantly in the direction of the mill. Therefore when the sheets are delivered thereon their direction of movement will be immediately reversed and they will be fed forwardly over the roller-table between the conveyers Z and Y and onto the top stretch of the conveyer Y which will return them over the mill.

lVhile I have shown and described one specific embodiment of'my invention it will be understood that Ifdo not wish to be limited thereto, since various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of my invention, as defined in the appended claims.

l claim:

1. A. mechanical catcher for sheet mills comprising the combination with a sheet rolling mill of a frame, an upwardly inclined conveyer mounted in said frame and operating to convey sheets away from said mill, an endless conveyer having feed and return portions and arranged above said first named conveyer, said last named conveyer being operated in the reverse direction to said first named conveyer and with its return portion in engagement with said iirst named conveyer so as to engage and pinch the sheets bein carried by said first named conveyer, a thir conveyer arranged to the rear of said first and second named conveyers and having its end nearest said mill at substantially the same elevation as the rear end of said second named conveyer, said third named conve er being adapted to receive the sheets from between said first and second named conveyers and being operated to feed said sheets forwardly onto said second named conveyer `which will in turn return the sheets over said mill.

2. A mechanical catcher for sheet mills comprising the lcombination with a sheet rolling mill of a frame, an upwarly inclined endless conveyer mounted in said frame and arranged to have its top surface move in a direction away from the mill, said conveyer having its end nearest said mill below the line of feed of sheets from said mill, a second endless conveyer arranged' above said first named conveyer, said last named conveyer being arranged with its top stretch relatively taut and with its bottom stretch slack `so as to hang by gravity onto and serve to engage and pinch sheets being carried by the top stretch of said first named conveyer, said second named conveyer being operated in a reverse direction to said first named conveyer, a third conveyer arranged to the rear of said first and second named conveyers and having its end nearest said mill at substantially the same elevation as the rear end of said second named conveyer, said third conveyer being operated to move its top surface or stretch toward said mill, said third named conveyer being adapted to receive the sheets from between said first and second named conveyers and to feed said sheets forwardly onto the top stretch of said second named conveyer which returns them over said mill.

3. A mechanical catcher for sheet mills comprising the combination with a sheet rolling mill of a frame,an upwardly inclined endless conveyer mounted in said frame and arranged to have its top surface move in a.

direction away from the mill, said conveyer having^its end nearest said mill below the line of feed of sheets from said mill, a second vendless conveyer arranged above said first named conveyer, said last named conveyer being arranged with its top stretch relatively taut and with its bottom stretch slack so as to hang by gravity onto and serve to engage and pinch sheets being carried by the top stretch of said first named conveyer, said second named conveyer being operated in a reverse direction to said 4first named conveyer, a third conveyer arranged to the rear of said first and second named conveyers and having its end nearest, said mill at substantially the same elevation as the rear end of said second named conveyer, said third conveyer being operated to move its top surface or stretch toward said mill,I means for bridging the space between the forward end of said third conveyer and the rear end of said second named conveyer, said third named conveyer being adapted to receive the sheets from between said first and second named conveyers and to feed said sheets forwardly over said bridging means and onto the top stretch of said second .named conveyer which returns them over said mill.`

4. A mechanical catcher for sheet mills comprising a frame, an upwardly inclined endless slat conveyer mounted in said frame and arranged to have its top surface move in a direction away from the mill, said conveyer having its end nearest the mill below the line of feed of sheets from the mill, a second endless slat conveyer arranged above said first named conveyer, said last named conveyer being arranged with its bottom stretch slack so as to hang by gravity onto and serve to engage and pinch the sheetsrbeing carried by said first named conveyer, said second named conveyer being operated in a reverse direction to said first named conveyer, a third Slat conveyer arranged to the rear of said first and second named conveyers and having its end nearest said mill at substantially the same elevation as the rear end of said second named conveyer, said third conveyer being operated to move its top surface or stretch toward said mill, said third named conveyer being adapted to receive the sheets from between said first and 5 second named conveyers and `to feed said sheets forwardly onto the top stretch of said second named conveyer which returns them over said mill.

5. A mechanical catcher for sheet mills comprising a frame, an upwardly inclined endless slat conveyer mounted in said frame and arranged to have it stop surface move in a direction away from the mill, said conveyer having its end nearest the mill below the line of feed of sheets from' the mill, a second endless slat conveyer arranged above said first named conveyer, said last named conveyer being arranged with its bottom stretch slack so as to hang by gravity onto and serveA to engage and pinch the sheets being carried by said first named conveyer, said second named conveyer being operated in a reverse direction to said rst named conveyer, a third slat conveyer arranged to the rear of said first and second named conveyers and havingits end nearest said mill at substantially the'same elevation as the rear end of said second named conveyer and being operated in the same direction as said second named third named conveyer being heavier than the other slats so as to project above said other slats and form stops against which the sheets engage so as to straighten the line of feed 35.

of said sheetssaid last-named conveyer being adapted to receive the sheets from between the first and second named conveyers and to feed said sheets forwardly onto the top stretch of said second named conveyer which returns them over the mill.

6. A mechanical catcher for sheet mills comprising a frame, anpupwardly inclined endless slat conveyer mountedin said frame and arranged to have its top surface move in adirection away from the' mill, said conveyer having its end nearest the mill below the line of feed of sheets from the mill, a second endless slat conveyer arranged above said first named conveyer, said last named conveyer being of less length than said first named conveyer and terminating a material distance from the upper end of said first named conveyer, said second named conveyer l5 being operated in a reverse direction' to said first named conveyer and being arranged -with its bottom stretch slack so as to hang by gravity onto and serve to engage and pinch the sheets being carried by said irst named conveyer, a third slat conveyer arranged to the rear of said rst and second namedfconveyers and being operated in the same direction as said second named conveyer, said third named conveyer being adapted to receve the sheets from said first named conconveyer, at least some of the slats of said of said sheets and also prevent overrunning p second and third named conveyers to bridge the space between the ends thereof, said table being so arranged that at least some of its.

rollers extend down into the path of travel of sheets being 'conveyed upwardly along said first named conveyer and serve to pinch said sheets, against said conveyer as said sheets pass beyond the limit of said second named conveyer.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

IRWIN R. TAYLOR. 

